MESSE 2014: CME Xkeys 37 - Its Longer

The X-Keys from CME we saw last year and were impressed with the $99 USB keyboard with polyphonic aftertouch at that price. With only two octaves though the playable surface was not so useful for anything other than small parts.

CME have brought a 37 key X-Keys version to the show which makes things a lot more interesting for the player. Also tested with up to 7 devices linked to an iPad!

Interesting that you always kept her in frame :) Wonder if she comes with the keyboard... :)

12-Mar-14 08:28 PM

Said...

Is that Alicia Keys in the background? :)

13-Mar-14 02:37 PM

Keyboard Player Said...

Why no version with proper keys?

What's the point of polyphonic aftertouch on a silly little toy made of buttons?

CME - we're keyboard players, not Hobbits!

13-Mar-14 02:51 PM

Filtersweep Said...

The light weight slim and tiny keyboard is really nice for portability. I have one.... my favorite uses...

1. Note input when arranging in Sibelius. Xkey and a MacBook, awesome. Class compliant USB MIDI, just plugged it in.

2. Playing soft synths on iOS, and there are a lot of them now (ones from the big guys like Korg Poly Six, and ones from independent devs like Sunrizer, or Arctic Pro). A few of these iOS synths support poly AT, so lots of fun, and MUCH better than playing on the touch screen. Even a pianist would agree there, I am sure.

Anyway, the XKey isn't a replacement for something like the Kawai VP-1. It's a solution for computer music, hence the USB connector and no internal sounds.

13-Mar-14 04:39 PM

pqCah Said...

That's all well and good - but actually keyboard players would like a full 61, 76 or 88 note controller with polyphonic aftertouch too.

And - I own the Korg Nano and it's junk - these sort of controllers with proprietary keys usually end up on the scrap heap. There's a reason that pianos and all good keyboards have their key structure and size - it's the result of hundreds of years of human interaction leading to that optimal size. If you want one of these toys that's fine, but actual keyboard players are waiting for a controller with polyphonic aftertouch too.

14-Mar-14 06:06 AM

Bob Said...

I have an XKey, QuNexus and an EPS16+.

After so many decades of waiting, it is now possible to buy an affordable Poly Aftertouch keyboard. It seemed that poly aftertouch was destined to be a forgotten relic, but I think because of the iPad and the synth apps that support poly aftertouch, that we are seeing a re-emergence poly aftertouch.

I feel confident that we will see more poly aftertouch keyboards before long. The demand is certainly there and there is no technical reason to hold it back. It is inexcusable that keyboard manufacturers have held back poly aftertouch for this long.

I like both the QuNexus and XKey and they work very well with my iOS and Windows apps.

I like the feel of the QuNexus silicone keys because they are soft, have a sense of grab, and are quicker to play because there is no key travel, but I wish the keys were full size and had 3 or more octaves.

I like the low profile keys and aluminum chassis of the XKey. The thing I don't like are the noisy plastic keys. They sound like a computer keyboard

The pressure sensing technology used by QuNexus and XKey seems to be the same, but is different than what is used in older synth keyboards. My old Ensoniq EPS 16 requires much more pressure and key travel.

The biggest problem I have with the QuNexus and the XKey is that it is too easy to cause unwanted note off/on events when modulating the lower pressure range. There needs to be some separation between the bottom of the pressure range and the note off event so that a person can confidently control pressure and note off/on.